Chapter 4

Chapter 4 "Stroke!" Princess Pulverizer called out, directing the crew of pirates as they pulled on their oars. "Stroke!"

Truthfully, the princess didn't see any point in all this rowing. The Seasick Soaker was still anchored in the cove. It wasn't going anywhere, no matter how hard these men pulled. But Cap'n Bobbie had put the princess in charge of the rowers. And she'd told her to keep them rowing. So row they did. Boy, was Cap'n Bobbie mean. Princess Pulverizer couldn't imagine why Cap'n Bobbie had put her in charge of anything. Any one of the rowers could do it. And they'd all been around much longer than she had. Of course, there would have been plenty of fighting among them if she picked one of them to boss the others around. So maybe this was a good move on the captain's part. If she was being honest, Princess Pulverizer liked being in charge of something—even if it was just a rowing crew that wasn't going anywhere.

"Sit still, Wiggle-Butt Willy," one of the rowers called out. "You're rocking the bench back and forth." "Can't help it, Three-Toed Tommy. Me legs itch," Wiggle-Butt Willy replied. "At least ye have two legs," another pirate called to him. "An alligator got one of mine." "You tell him, Peg-Leg Pete!" Tommy agreed. "That same gator ate two of me toes for dessert—right after he made a dinner out of yer leg." "He was one hungry gator," Pete agreed. Princess Pulverizer frowned. The pirates were so busy talking, they had stopped rowing. If Cap'n Bobbie saw this ..."STROKE!" Princess Pulverizer shouted, trying to sound in charge. The pirates quieted down immediately and began rowing again. Wow. Princess Pulverizer was pretty good at this boss thing, if she did say so herself.

Which she wouldn't. Because bragging wasn't knightly. It was also what had gotten her into this mess in the first place. Somehow, she had to find a way to free Meri and get off this boat, along with Dribble and Lucas. But as of yet, she hadn't come up with a new idea of how to do that. So until she did— "Stroke!" Princess Pulverizer called out. "Stroke!" "Give me one of them cheese sandwiches," Three-Toed Tommy said as Princess Pulverizer and the rowing crew entered the galley for their short lunch break.

Dribble plopped a grilled cheddar on rye on a chipped plate and handed it to Tommy. "Me too," Wiggle-Butt Willy said. "They look better than our usual slop." A chubby pirate with a big red face bounded out of the kitchen. "What did you say?" he bellowed. "Sorry, Cookie," Willy told him. "But them sandwiches look tastier than your grub." "Smell better, too," Stinky Stanley pointed out. "I'm surprised ye can smell anything, the way ye stink," Cookie told Stanley.

Princess Pulverizer frowned. She knew she smelled pretty bad, too. She still hadn't had a chance to wash up like she'd planned. But at least she wasn't as stinky as Stanley. Next to him, she smelled like roses. "So you're finally a chef," she told Dribble. "Yeah," Dribble agreed. "Cap'n Bobbie figured my flames were cheaper than firewood for cooking." "The pirates really like your sandwiches," Princess Pulverizer said. "It's kind of a dream come true." Dribble shook his head. "More like a nightmare. I don't want to cook for them." "What am I supposed to do with all this slop?" Cookie demanded of the pirates.